Católica celebrates the ideals of democracy through music

"Today we celebrate the ideals of Democracy through the universal language of music," was how Sérgio Peixoto, Maestro of the Choir of Universidade Católica, described the group's concert at the Fundação Amélia de Mello Gallery, in celebration of the exhibition “The Democracy Collection: Advocacy through Art”, at the headquarters of Universidade Católica, in Lisbon, on July 4.

In this "musical expedition" designed to "explore the diversity of the American experience," in the Maestro's words, the choir sang 5 works representative of different moments in US history, through various musical forms and structures, such as Jazz, Blues, traditional Spirituals and Broadway musicals.

Starting with What a Wonderful World by George David Weiss, Blue Moon by Richard Rodgers, Jericho Blues, Trad. Spiritual, I Got Rhythm, by G. Gershwin. And also I Don't Know How to Love Him, from the Broadway musical, Jesus Christ Superstar, in this gathering sung by the soloist, Ema.

After the concert, which was attended by Isabel Capeloa Gil, President of the Universidade Católica, the guests, among them participants of the XIII Lisbon Summer School for the Study of Culture of Católica, had the opportunity to take a guided tour of the exhibition "The Democracy Collection: Advocacy through Art".

Inaugurated by the First Lady of the United States of America, Jill Biden, the President of Católica and the US Ambassador in Portugal, Randi Levine, in the scope of the partnership between Universidade Católica and the United States Embassy in Portugal, the exhibition celebrates the 60th anniversary of the "Art in Embassies" initiative.

Gathering works by Hank Willis Thomas, America Irby, Sanford Bigger, Lawrence Weiner, Xaviera Simmons and Vasco Araújo, the exhibition is on show in the Gallery and may be visited, for free, until 11 July.